Members of a popular internet forum were left bewildered after one parent revealed why they evicted their son and daughter-in-law from the home they'd been living in for free.
In a viral Reddit post published on r/AmITheA**hole, Redditor u/In-law-issues (otherwise referred to as the original poster, or OP) said they were happy to house the engaged couple but explained how the rent-free living arrangement imploded when they were forcefully banned from their son's wedding.
Titled, "[Am I the a**hole] for throwing them out of a house that we own [when] Son & future In-Laws [decided] to exclude his family from wedding?" the post has received more than 13,000 votes and 1,800 comments in the last seven hours.
Noting that they and their wife purchased a second home in Pennsylvania when their son was in college there, the original poster said that everything went smoothly for a few years—until he graduated, got engaged and moved his fiancée into the house.
With a wedding on the horizon, the original poster said they arranged a barbecue at the second home meant to bring both families together, but was shocked to learn that their son's new family had no interest in keeping his actual family around.
"My wife, daughter and the fiancée go into the house along with her mother and sisters and my son," OP wrote. "A few minutes later my wife and daughter come out and are really upset."
"They tell me that our son and his fiancée, along with her family, don't want us at the wedding," OP continued. "I was livid. I called my son and...he tells me that her family [feels] that we are not good enough and will embarrass them at a family wedding."
Following the bombshell announcement, the original poster said they let a week pass before making the ultimate decision to remove their son from the Pennsylvania home.
"I let a week go by to calm myself down and drive back to the PA house," OP wrote. "The new future in-laws are in the house along with the fiancée. It appears that they all moved in."
"They tell me to leave their house. I lost it, and told them that they had 30 days to get out," OP continued. "[My son] calls me and asks why I'm selling his house [and] I tell him...he was living there rent free, but since he doesn't want us in his new life, he has to get out."
Housing adult children can be contentious, especially when it comes to rent and balancing parental leniency and bad business practices.
But while much of this debate centers around parents and their adult children living under the same roof, the addition of a second home can bring clarity, or complicate things even further.
When adult children live in a separate dwelling owned by their parents, it is often easier for both parties to understand the difference between their familial relationship, and their relationship as tenant and property owner.
In an informational guide for homeowners renting to their kids or other relatives, Chase Bank asserts that separating personal relationships from business is necessary for keeping peace between landlords and their loved ones.
"Set boundaries and expectations before jumping into a deal," the Chase website reads. "Keep the landlord-tenant relationship separate from your personal relationship [and] treat overdue payments or breaches of contract like you would any tenant."
When there is no expectation of rent, though, and the tenant-landlord relationship fails to evolve beyond parent and child, chaos is almost always just around the corner—especially when a wedding is involved.
Earlier this year, wedding outlet Brides published a list of the six, most-common, pre-wedding fights. Included among the list are clashes over traditions, arguments over money and competition between in-laws.
Not included on the list, however, are future in-laws uninviting the groom's parents for fear of embarrassment.
Throughout the comment section of the viral post, Redditors were taken aback by the original poster's shocking revelation, and even more stunned by their son's seeming refusal to do anything about it.
"[Not the a**hole]," Redditor u/Poppycorn144 wrote in the post's top comment, which has received nearly 11,000 votes. "What kind of people do they think you are?"
"How was your son ok with excluding his whole family?" they questioned. "Do you think your sons's been brainwashed by his fiancée?"
Redditor u/pepperpat64, whose comment has received more than 9,000 votes, was also perplexed.
"They all moved into your house??" they exclaimed. "That's so bizarre. Tell them they're not your kind of people, aka, squatters."
In a pair of separate comments, Redditors u/shooter0213 and u/ShiloX35 slammed the original poster's son for thinking he could exclude his family from his wedding and somehow stay living in the house that they pay for.
"I actually find it hilarious he is soo entitled to the house he didn't even expect you to take it back after his actions," u/shooter0213 commented, receiving more than 4,000 votes. "I believe this is exactly the reality check he needed."
"Excluding his family from the wedding for ridiculous reasons is a pretty big FU to you and your family," u/ShiloX35 chimed in, receiving nearly 2,000 votes. "He is experiencing the natural consequences of his actions."
Newsweek reached out to u/In-law-issues for comment.
